


Love Like This Won't Last Forever

by Sgt_Nutmeg



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Mentioned Yachi Hitoka, Minor Yachi Hitoka/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:54:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23692720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sgt_Nutmeg/pseuds/Sgt_Nutmeg
Summary: Akiteru can’t stop his brother from falling in love (that ship already sailed) but he can at least make sure he’s ready for the downfall.
Relationships: Kuroo Tetsurou/Tsukishima Kei
Comments: 14
Kudos: 64





	1. Chapter 1

Akiteru’s whole Saturday had been spent socially engaged and even thought he had fun, he was now exhausted. But it was barely seven p.m., he still had plenty of time before he decided if he wanted to go out with Saeko and her friends or not.

He was resting on the couch when he heard the front gate opening, then Kei’s voice drifting from the street. He had left early, and their mom had said he’d taken his volleyball gear. It was nice to know his little brother had finally found some passion for the sport.

Akiteru went back to texting his friends about their plans for the night, already deciding he was going out since it was the weekend.

He was in the middle of typing sentence when he heard a snicker that would probably never come from Yamaguchi. He paid attention and realized the deep voice wasn’t any he’d heard when he watched Karasuno play. His curiosity was getting stronger the longer Kei stayed outside, and it was already a long time.

His phone buzzed, and he had the urge to tell it to shut up.

Nothing coming from the street was distinctive enough to make out, no matter how hard he was trying. He rushed to the door. Kei hadn’t come into their property yet but Akiteru could see him at the open gate.

He was looking at the ground, didn’t seem to have noticed his older brother watching but Akiteru still hid halfway behind the door. The sun was going down and the lighting made it hard to pick up their expressions; they were little more than silhouettes.

His little brother was talking to a boy. A boy with crazy hair and a casual relaxed stance that screamed that he was cool.

“…should go back, Hinata isn’t patient, he’ll annoy Kenma,” Kei didn’t sound as annoyed as usual.

“I could tag along again…maybe. Next time Kenma comes visit,” The guy scratched the back of his crazy head.

“You could come on your own. If you want,” Kei’s voice was less confident, he was fidgeting with his hands.

“I’d like that,” The guy reached over and touched his arm. Kei finally looked up and nodded.

The boy then hugged Kei. To Akiteru’s surprise he didn’t immediately throw the other off. Instead he slowly hugged him back.

He saw Kei nod, so he assumed the stranger was saying something low enough that he couldn’t hear it. The hug seemed to become less tense after that, both of them loosening up. The guy moved back and Akiteru wouldn’t admit that the pause as he pulled away could’ve allowed for a kiss to be placed on Kei’s cheek. It was too outrageous to think about.

All he’d seen was a boy hug Kei, then wave as he walked away. Even the hug was out of place, but he had to stick to those facts if he didn’t want to fall into a hole of overwhelming curiosity.

He rushed back into the house, hoping Kei wouldn’t notice he had been snooping. However, Kei didn’t seem to care, he was deep in thought as he walked up to his room. Akiteru had to tell himself that his little brother’s red face as he walked into the house didn’t mean much, it was still hot outside, it could’ve just been a sunburn.

Later on, when he asked Kei what he’d been up to all day and he said he’d been playing volleyball Akiteru completely forgot about the mysterious kid in favor of asking how his training was going. There were new techniques that the Karasuno team was using and the physics of some of their plays blew his mind.

Who would’ve known Kei would become the new volleyball geek of the house?

By the time they stopped their discussion on float serves he had forgotten about the boy outside, dismissing him as just another teammate.

* * *

It had been a normal day. A good day actually. His boss had praised his hard work and the cute desk assistant had flirted with him. He’d even managed to practice some receives with Kei after dinner. His brother must’ve been in a good mood himself, because he’d actually smiled at some of Akiteru’s jokes during dinner, even if he didn’t laugh.

He wanted to go to Kei’s room, and tell him about that girl at his job. Kei didn’t care about gossip but Akiteru liked discussing his day and now that he didn’t constantly have roommates around him, Kei was the next best thing. He decided against it, knowing Kei would be talking on the phone. He had become such a chatterbox lately. He had been talking to Yamaguchi almost every night the last week.

He instead chose to get started on some paperwork he had to get done. He headed downstairs to get some snacks and on his way over he heard his brother’s voice still going on and on.

Except…that didn’t sound like Yamaguchi. The voice was deeper. He took a moment to feel proud that his brother was broadening his social circle. He was right by the door when he heard something that made him freeze mid step.

“Goodnight, kitten.”

Akiteru looked at the closed door with wide eyes. He could feel himself holding his breath, waiting for his brother to respond to the stranger. He’d never heard Kei talking to someone else but Yamaguchi or sometimes, rarely, Kei would get calls from Hinata. Never a stranger with a smooth and sly voice.

Kei’s reply should be _shut up_ or _never call me that again_. Anything scathing and annoyed.

It shouldn’t be a quiet, “That’s a new one.”

It even sounded like Kei was _amused_.

“Do you think it’ll stick?” The person on the line laughed.

“It won’t; it’s stupid,” Kei said, his chuckle not mean or cold but soft and just the smallest degree of mocking.

“Ok, fine,” The stranger replied, before saying goodnight again.

“Goodnight, I’ll text.” Kei was once again so casual about it.

There was silence for a beat before Kei breathed a sigh that didn’t seem suffering or annoyed or anything else that embodied Kei. It was fond, happy.

Akiteru wanted to deny it, think maybe Yamaguchi just had a cold or some other reason for why his voice would be that gravely. But he knew for sure that it wasn’t Yamaguchi. The boy’s cheerful voice didn’t match the one that had come from the phone. If anything it was too deep, some older student maybe? That paired with the little nickname, made Akiteru’s protective-brother senses flare up. He shook his head to get rid of the thought, it could just be a classmate with a deep voice, nothing too bad.

He finished his trek to the kitchen, grabbing his snack and making a lot of noise going back upstairs. He made sure Kei would know he was on the way. He didn’t want to surprise him and make him defensive from the start. He wanted to keep Kei in the best mood he could so he would maybe tell him about this new friend.

“Hey,” He knocked before looking inside. Even with all the noise he’d made he found Kei, completely absorbed by his phone, texting fast. He only glanced at Akiteru before returning to the device.

There was a blush on his cheeks, the light of the phone only made it all that more visible.

It was obvious that the blush wasn’t because Akiteru, though. He probably didn’t even know he’d heard some of his conversation. Kei wasn’t looking embarrassed or reacting in any way to his brother. He was, however, still texting. The blush had to be for the person who was making Kei’s phone buzz every couple of seconds.

“Are you still texting Yamaguchi this late?” Akiteru asked, finally getting Kei’s full attention.

Kei glanced at the phone and shrugged. “He’s my best friend.”

“Were you talking to him just now?”

The question made Kei’s look away, choosing his bedspread instead. “Yeah, we have a lot to talk about,” He muttered.

Akiteru wanted to ask again, to challenge the lie, but he also didn’t want to torture Kei, he already looked so uncomfortable.

“I just wanted to make sure we are going to get mom’s cake tomorrow morning,” Her birthday was the next day.

Kei rolled his eyes, annoyed again. Akiteru had already checked twice that afternoon and Kei’s phone kept buzzing with texts messages, begging for attention.

“Yeah, whatever,” Kei said, going back to his phone. Akiteru retreated, knowing that was his way of dismissing him.

He went back to his room and flopped down on his desk chair. Only then he realized what was bugging him so much: _That_ had been normal Kei response, annoyed, impatient and disinterested. Akiteru couldn’t even imagine addressing Kei as kitten and not getting a laptop thrown at his face.

Whoever this guy was, he had the gall to call him a kitten and Kei hadn’t immediately snapped at him or cut off the conversation. That meant _trouble_.

Akiteru wasn’t really shocked at the fact Kei was blushing for a boy. He had always known Kei liked boys, or maybe not known but he’d suspected.

It had been pretty obvious when he’d declared at six years old that he was planning to marry the kid next door. Childhood declarations of love didn’t mean much but Akiteru had still made a note of it. He’d seen the way Kei observed any girl he brought home, like he didn’t understand what Akiteru was interested in, or why he was so excited and nervous before every date. Confused in a way that was more than just children’s beliefs on cooties. He had been debating between Kei being asexual or gay, but now it seemed gay was winning.

So, Kei’s sexuality wasn’t an issue, what was shocking was for anyone to be so soft with him. He wasn’t small, adorable or in any way sweet. He was six feet tall and glared more than he blinked. He didn’t fit pet name specially not small animal themed ones.

Adorable just wasn’t a characteristic of his. He was handsome, sure, in that scary mysterious way that some girls liked, but adorable was a bit beyond the scope of someone his size.

Akiteru knew Kei _could_ be all those things. As a child he’d been sweet and very cute, but even as a child Akiteru was one of the only people that had seen that. Yamaguchi being his friend was proof of Kei managing to be nice.

So, he wasn’t rotten or truly mean but still…kitten? No way.

Furthermore, no one was supposed to know that Kei was nice. Kei never allowed anyone to know any of it. Akiteru hadn’t been too fond of his brother’s sarcasm but he’d understood his need to protect himself and he was at least comforted by the fact that Kei would be hard to hurt. But this guy, this late-night-conversations, pet-name-calling guy seemed to be too close already. If he could hurt him as easily as he could make him blush, then he was _trouble_.

He had thought Kei would end up with someone like Yamaguchi. Someone soft, sweet and who adored anything and everything Kei did. Someone who stuck with him through his moods and his insecurities. He needed someone patient and Akiteru was worried.

The voice on the phone had been teasing and sly. A guy like that wouldn’t stay if the target wasn’t fun and Kei wasn’t really…fun. Or maybe the guy was betting on Kei being young and easy to sway. Kei wouldn’t be so easy to charm though. Sure he was already allowing the kid some liberties with the pet name, but he’d guard his heart. He knew how to scare people off, he would be able to shake this guy if he was bad news. Wouldn’t he?

After that day Akiteru started paying more attention to his baby brother. He tried to catch any sliver of information Kei might drop and made sure to notice any changes in his routine.

For example how he’d leave their family movie nights to go upstairs and talk on the phone. If he was ever pressed to stay, he would be texting the entire time. He would say it was Yamaguchi, but now Akiteru knew it wasn’t always true.

He would retreat to his room a lot, but he was also a lot more engaged when he was around, asking about their days, actually talking about his and once he’d even kissed their mom on the cheek as he ran out to school. She had been as surprised as Akiteru and had squealed once Kei was out of the house.

Sometimes, Akiteru would catch him looking off into the distance, a smile on his lips.

It was so out of character.

More clues confirmed what Akiteru had suspected, the guy had a link to volleyball. That was when he remembered the day, he’d seen Kei and another kid at the gate. He felt so stupid for having dismissed it so quickly.

Now, Kei was practicing a lot harder, even asking him for help after school. It was like he was a kid again, wanting to impress his brother with his volleyball skills. But now it wasn’t _Akiteru_ he wanted to impress. That was more than clear.

He had never felt more betrayed than when he realized the sport he loved, might have helped turn his brother into someone’s _kitten_.

He wasn’t proud to admit it, but he’d listened in on many of their conversations. It was wrong, but curiosity was driving him crazy and Kei wouldn’t tell him anything. Besides, they talked for hours, he had to know what about. Sometimes it was about homework, others about volleyball and sometimes things that he never thought his brother would be interested in. Like space and alien theories. Kei had always been a dinosaur kid, not a space one.

Whoever was on the other line didn’t seem to mind hearing Kei rant for long periods of time. From his teacher to what he thought was salvageable from the latest popular band. Akiteru knew any topic Kei had thoughts on, always turned into a long-winded lecture, but the guy didn’t seem to mind how long Kei could talk. He even brought up the subjects and patiently waited to listen to the whole thing. Kei paid him the same courtesy when he wanted to complain about his classmates or talk about books he was reading.

Akiteru had heard the excitement in the kid’s voice as he told Kei about how he’d sat through an entire documentary on velociraptors to be able to tell him that he’d been right about Jurassic Park. Which prompted Kei to start talking about evolution and feathers and made Akiteru almost dose off.

“You’re always right Tsukki, you’re too smart,” The guy had said, in that smooth low voice.

‘Tsukki’ that had also been Akiteru’s nickname during school. Some of his friends still called him that, but he’d never heard it with so much fondness unless it was coming from a girlfriend. On paper it all sounded cute but Akiteru could already see how much this kid could hurt Kei.

“Shut up.” Kei’s voice had carried some annoyance but mostly he was just bashful, with a hint of pride at the praise.

_Trouble._

Yamaguchi had recorded Kei blocking during some practices, to show how much faster and better he was getting. Kei had shown him, but he knew the real target for the clips wasn’t him. Kei respected his knowledge in Volleyball, sure, but he had been a spiker, not a blocker. And Kei had never bothered doing anything like that before.

And he’d never taken selfies before. They were just quick ones with Yamaguchi or getting popsicles with his team but _still_. They were clearly meant to be sent to someone and he was pretty sure who that someone was.

_Trouble._

The final nail in the coffin, was Kei coming back from a training scrimmage in Tokyo with a blush and chapped lips. Akiteru didn’t even try to ask, his brother looked embarrassed enough already. It was enough proof to know the guy was making moves and Kei was already too smitten.

_Trouble, trouble, trouble._

Whoever the kid was and whatever he was like, he was already stealing Kei’s heart.

His brother was going to get hurt and Akiteru didn’t know what to do.


	2. Chapter 2

“Do you know if there’s any new kids in the volleyball team?” Akiteru asked.

Saeko looked up from her milkshake and tilted her head in confusion. To be fair, it had been a really abrupt change in topic.

He had gotten into a good routine with Saeko. They had an almost weekly outing, usually to coffee shops or to get lunch. It was nice to catch up with someone who’d been in around the same graduating class. Especially when she was as invested as he was in their little brothers' team. They could discuss old Karasuno rumors and new Karasuno rumors.

“Not yet, they’re recruiting I think…but those kids won’t start until the new season. Ryu hasn’t told me much about it. Why?”

Akiteru shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

Saeko, of course, wouldn’t let it go that easy. She was polite enough not to outright ask but kept sending curious looks his way until Akiteru caved.

“Kei’s got a new friend and they talk about volleyball a lot. So I thought it might be a new kid in the team.”

“Maybe it’s just one of the regulars?”

“I’ve met most of the team; it doesn’t seem like one of them.”

“I’ll ask Ryu about it.” She shrugged, focusing back on pushing her straw around the tall glass.

He let the matter drop and they continued their lunch, laughing about their struggles at work. It was a nice day, Akiteru always enjoyed her company, it was like reconnecting with an old friend, even if they’d never really spoken while at school.

The thing was…

The next time they met, wasn’t as normal. Akiteru had still been hearing Kei’s long conversations with the guy and he’d asked again if she’d heard anything about Kei making a friend in the team.

This time the reaction was different.

Saeko smiled in the way she always did when she was talking about a dog she’d seen in the window of a car. The face she made when she said things like _‘it’s was the cutest thing ever!’_

That face in any way related to his brother wasn’t good news.

“What is it?” He asked, impatiently leaning forward.

She bit her lip and took a deep breath, managing to control her enthusiasm. “Nothing, I don’t know anything.” Her smile widened again. “I just remembered that Ryu talked to a girl and I was excited about my little brother maybe finding a girlfriend soon.”

She was lying. She kept glancing at him like she wanted to say more, and she still looked excited but no matter how many times he asked she wouldn’t tell him anything, even after he outright asked if Kei was dating anyone.

That was how he had ended up walking Kei home from practice every day. For a week, he would go to the school after work and walk home with Kei and his friends.

He knew his brother wasn’t completely pleased about it, but he also didn’t complain. After all, there didn’t seem to be anyone Kei wanted to hide, at least not in Karasuno.

Yamaguchi and Yachi didn’t mind Akiteru’s company either. They were a sweet couple. Both enjoyed telling him about their days and the team’s training, their detailed accounts so different to Kei’s short replies. Because of their conversations now he knew for sure that there was no one new in the team that Kei could be bonding with, but that only meant the guy was in some other school or maybe played a different sport.

He didn’t bother directly asking Yamaguchi though. They got along well, but obviously, his loyalty laid with his best friend and he always knew what Kei wanted kept secret.

In the end he gave up. He stopped meeting them after school because it was clear he wouldn’t catch any new leads there. If he didn’t see the way Kei texted the whole way home, he might have even assumed Yamaguchi didn’t know. But the way both Yachi and Yamaguchi just accepted it and left him to it, showed that they knew. They weren’t curious at all and that just made it worse for Akiteru, he felt like the only one who didn’t know.

What if he hurt Kei and Akiteru didn’t even know his name? He couldn’t go all big brother crazy and kick his ass if he didn’t even know the kid.

* * *

Akiteru was getting home early, excited to start the weekend already. They’d had a meeting rescheduled, which meant he could start the weekend a few hours early.

He was planning on bullying Kei into going to the movies with him once he got home from school, make him enjoy the fact he had passed all his exams.

However, his good mood was ruined as soon as he stepped into the house and immediately saw something was amiss.

Kei shouldn’t be home yet, but his shoes were at the door. They had finished midterms and spring break was starting. Akiteru knew that the volleyball team didn’t have mandatory practice, but most teams would play for fun, even if not required to. Specially the Karasuno team, they always stayed even later when it wasn’t an official practice.

Bottom line…Kei was never back this early.

And…

There were a pair of boots next to Kei’s shoes, nothing Yamaguchi would wear.

There was also a backpack next to Kei’s. Again, not Yamaguchi’s.

He called out a greeting, waiting to hear a response but nothing came.

He slowly walked to the living room expecting to find Kei studying with a friend, but instead found it empty. There were glasses halfway full of sofa on the low coffee table and the T.V. was on, the gaming console paused on a game. Akiteru shook his head, trying to stop getting hung up on every detail, this wasn’t a crime scene, just…Kei had a friend home.

Just as he was slowing down the cogs in his head, he saw the most distressing evidence...a large red jacket was draped over the couch. There was a bold font on the back, proudly announcing ‘Nekoma’. Akiteru knew the school. He might have not been part of the regular volleyball team, but he was still part of it, so he knew about the rivalry. He walked closer and nervously picked a sleeve, just to make sure it was real.

“Neko…” Akiteru said in a whisper. The dots connected, and he felt his heart drop. “Kitten,” The panic in his own voice surprised him.

But it really _was_ time to panic.

The guy was in their house. It wasn’t just a friend of Kei’s. It was...the boyfriend?

“Shit, shit, shit, shit,” Akiteru could feel his heart speeding up. What was he supposed to do? Leave? Call even louder that he was home? He felt so tense all of a sudden. The boots, the jacket, the empty house, it was all keeping him on edge, despite the sunshine streaming through the window and the cheerful sounds coming from the paused game.

He tried to calm his breathing; telling himself it was probably just a friend Kei was studying with. The _kitten_ guy probably wasn’t even in Nekoma, that would be too obvious, too stupid.

Besides, Nekoma was a school in _Tokyo_. He knew his brother; it would be hard for anyone to deal with his personality but long distance? Probably impossible.

Bottom line, Kei wouldn’t be able to really date a guy that didn’t respond to his demands, even less if said boy lived in Tokyo. Even less if he was as laidback as he sounded on the phone. It was _impossible_.

So Akiteru had to relax. He took a deep breath trying to get rid of the overthinking.

It was probably just someone Kei was tutoring, like he’d done with Hinata and Kageyama. The Nekoma jacket wasn’t important, it could be thrifted, or maybe he had made a friend at camp and maybe he really needed help with his homework or maybe Kei had been tasked to show him around Miyagi, maybe more of the Nekoma team would show up later.

Whatever the reason, he just had to breathe and go find his brother.

He shifted gears, he just had to handle with it like he would if Yamaguchi was visiting. If the kid was staying for dinner, they could order pizza. Everything was fine. It was all fine.

But it wasn’t fine. As he walked further into the house, he heard a hitched gasp coming from the kitchen, the following groan made him walk faster.

The door to the kitchen felt daunting. It felt like the whole house was under a quiet spell, like if he spoke it would have to be in a whisper, just to match the tense atmosphere. He opened it dreading what he would find.

What he hadn’t expected to find was his brother being crowded against the counter by a kid with crazy dark hair. They were kissing deeply, the kind of passionate that meant Kei’s arms were around the other’s neck and the guy’s hand was sneaking sliding under Kei’s shirt.

Akiteru was too dumbfounded to realize that letting out a loud gasp was stupid. The noise got them to quickly separate, not completely, but at least they weren’t kissing anymore. They turned to him with wide eyes and blushing cheeks.

Akiteru tried not to notice or process anything else, like how Kei’s hair was a little mussed or how his breathing was labored. He pretended he couldn’t see any of it.

He opened his mouth, trying to find words as the guy’s arms loosened around Kei.

“Kuroo, it’s my brother,” Kei said, pushing at his shoulders. He then grabbed his glasses from somewhere on the counter. ‘Kuroo’ stared worriedly at him as he backed away.

Shock was still written all over Kei’s face, but anxiety was already making its way around. As he struggled to say something, Kuroo finally pulled his hand away from Kei’s hip and Akiteru felt the embarrassment at what he’d interrupted flood over him.

“I…I just wanted to ask- pizza. If you want pizza…for dinner,” Akiteru said, wincing at his own unsteady voice.

Kei hesitantly looked over at Kuroo, who shrugged nervously. “Yeah, sure. Go order it and we’ll be out in a minute,” Kei said, his voice was extremely shaky.

“Okay,” Akiteru felt dumb following his little brother’s command but he still backed away from the door and closed it wondering how he should confront this situation. He turned to walk away but stopped short. Maybe it would be better to get back in and push through to get it over with.

“Babe, you’re shaking.”

He heard the guy’s voice- _Kuroo’s_ voice- from the room. He suddenly felt unbelievably protective over Kei.

Who did this kid think he was, talking, to Kei like that? Kei wasn’t his to protect, and the word _babe_ sounded weird directed at his gigantic brother, even more when coupled with how concerned he sounded.

“Are you okay?” Kuroo continued.

Akiteru expected a cold reply from Kei but what the kid got was a soft. “I’m fine,” Someone moved and then Kei’s voice came muffled, Kuroo had probably moved to hug him. “I don’t know, I think I’m fine. You’re still staying right?”

His voice was more hesitant than Akiteru had expected, and he felt his heart squeeze, he hadn’t meant to scare him.

“Yeah, yeah…of course. Whatever you want, Tsukki. I’m here if you want me.”

Kei took a deep breath and then let it go. “Let’s go face it already.” his voice had become steadier, more like himself.

Akiteru moved as fast as he could, without making noise, over to the living room. He had expected them to follow soon but it was still a couple of minutes before they joined him at the living room.

He looked up as Kei walked in. He was still blushing, and his lips were still red and chapped. Akiteru wanted to cringe, he felt so uncomfortable seeing his little brother all flustered like that.

Kuroo came in after, his hair still looking obnoxiously ruffled. He looked so aloof otherwise that Akiteru had to think it was his usual style. Kei stopped at the doorway looking awkward and Kuroo bumped his shoulder in silent support.

He looked older than Kei, at least a third year if not already a college student. He was as tall as Kei, but he looked a lot heavier with muscle. His calculating eyes rubbed Akiteru the wrong way, what was this confident kid doing with his brother? A Tokyo third year playing with a young first year?

Akiteru felt himself grow angry at the thought. Why was he even there? What had Akiteru interrupted?

“So, you found a stray cat, did you?” He said in a tone more challenging than he’d meant to use.

Kuroo snickered. “You know what they say, don’t feed a stray or they’ll never leave you alone,” He seemed more entertained than scared of Akiteru, that wasn’t okay.

Kei looked up at his…boyfriend and scowled. Kuroo’s teasing smile vanished, turning into a more honest one.

Kei turned to his brother. “This is Kuroo,” He hesitated, sending Kuroo a glance. “He’s my…boyfriend.”

Kuroo’s grin was huge and ecstatic as he bumped Kei’s shoulder again.

If he hadn’t been there, he was sure there would’ve been a kiss; Kuroo was looking at Kei like he was the freaking sun. Kei, on the other hand, was observing Akiteru, gaze nervous and still a little lost.

“That’s…nice?” He managed to say, Kei lifted a sceptic eyebrow. “It is Kei, I mean it! I just don’t know a lot about your boyfriend. I’m…just a bit shocked I think.”

The guy straitened up, moving from his slouch to his full height. “Name’s Kuroo Tetsurou,” He walked forward; his hand held out for Akiteru to shake. “You can ask anything you want.”

Akiteru didn’t know much about handshakes but it seemed confident. His own grip had probably been a bit harder than necessary but as long as Kei didn’t notice the small hostility then everything was fine. They let go and Kuroo retreated closer to Kei, looking only the smallest bit anxious as Akiteru surveyed him. He was wearing black jeans, a simple white t-shirt and the pattern on his socks was of little rocket ships. Nothing looked out of place, which meant the mess of hair on his head was a choice.

“How old are you?” Akiteru asked raising an eyebrow.

“Seventeen, I’m a third year,” Kuroo said barely shrinking, even under Akiteru’s scrutinizing glare.

“Yeah in Tokyo. How did you meet my brother?” Akiteru asked, using his serious voice. He still wasn’t sure if this kid was big trouble or just…regular sized trouble.

Kei sighed from his place against the doorway. “We went to volleyball camp together. Leave it alone,” He grabbed Kuroo’s hand, pulling him away and back through the doorway.

“Don’t go upstairs! Pizza will come soon!” Akiteru heard Kei’s long-suffering sigh but the couple just headed back into the kitchen, soon emerging with a bowl of chips Akiteru dimly remembered seeing on the counter.

He himself sighed, going up to his room to change out of his work clothes.

He knew he had sounded overbearing, but he wasn’t going to let his brother take that messy haired boy upstairs. He didn’t want to think about anyone’s hands crawling up Kei’s shirt, but he wanted even less for it to be that kid’s hands. He was too smooth, too sure of himself. Kei had become entertainment for an older kid, he had already become someone’s ‘kitten’ and Akiteru wasn’t going to let it escalate anymore.

He rushed back to the living room, already dreading any more scenes like the one in the kitchen. Instead he found them sitting closely together on the sofa, looking through Netflix titles.

He announced they could choose whatever they wanted, and he’d watch it along with them. Kei glared at him over the couch, but then went back to their selection. He heard them discussing genre’s as he went to grab his own snacks. He was not going to leave them alone, even if that meant having to watch whatever they picked.

“Wanna watch Godzilla, Tsukki?”

“You’ve already seen it; I don’t want you to get bored.”

“Only once and I don’t mind. I barely remember the whole thing,” Kuroo started playing the movie as he pulled Kei closer with an arm around his shoulders.

“Don’t you want to watch something new?” Kei asked, getting comfortable against Kuroo’s body.

“Nah, if you fall asleep, I don’t want you to miss anything.”

“I’m not a baby, you know. I can stay up past nine.”

“With those exams? I seriously doubt you’ll make it to eight,” Kuroo laughed and Kei didn’t tell him to shut up.

Akiteru dropped onto the couch wondering if they’d kick him out but neither seemed to mind his presence, Kuroo even pushed the bowl of chips towards him. He looked too at home, too relaxed, it wouldn’t hurt him to be at least a little intimidated by Akiteru.

He had come from work intending to take Kei to the cinema…or at least watch some T.V. and sleep the week’s exhaustion away. But no, instead of relaxing in his room he ended up on the single couch, watching the couple eat pizza and watch a movie.

It was such a weird image, Kei looking smaller than someone else. Not in height, but in the way, he let Kuroo interact with him. He really treated Kei like he was soft and cute and everything else a kitten was. Every time Kei laughed at something Kuroo would stare at him in awe. Which made Kuroo talk a lot during the movie, trying to get Kei to smile. He was successful most of the time, even if the smiles were sometimes reluctant and paired with eyerolling.

Kuroo was also extremely cuddly. Kei never wanted hugs from anyone but there Kuroo was, holding Kei close, touching his hair, playing with his fingers, he was so…affectionate. Of course, nothing was inappropriate, they didn’t kiss or anything with Akiteru there, but it still irked him. It felt too nice, too _movie_. Kuroo seemed to know exactly how to sweep people off their feet.

He didn’t really know how to describe what he disliked about the kid, but he still hated him. Maybe it was just the way he could whisper in Kei’s ear and have him blushing red all the way to his neck. That and the fact that he was older was, in his opinion, enough reason to hate him.

Finally, halfway into the second movie their mom arrived home from work. It felt like time had gone so slowly but finally Akiteru got someone to freak out with. He expected surprise and a lot of confusion but instead was shocked himself.

She cheerfully greeted Kuroo, not batting an eye at the fact that Kei was asleep on his _boyfriend’s_ shoulder. She only gave Kuroo a hug, awkward only because of the angle and then ran a hand through his messy hair, ruffling it and smiling at him fondly. Kuroo took it gracefully, smiling and greeting her back with as much warmth as she was giving him. Kei didn’t even have to wake up to make the introductions, they acted like old friends.

Akiteru ran after her into the kitchen. She was getting a strawberry shortcake out of the refrigerator. She had definitely known Kuroo was coming.

“You knew Kei had a boyfriend?” He asked, his indignation hidden in a whisper-shout so Kuroo wouldn’t hear from the other room.

“I assumed you knew, with how much you’ve been spying on him,” She said with an eyebrow arched. Akiteru’s shoulders hunched in shame. He didn’t know that she had noticed and if she had then Kei probably knew as well. Which meant Kei must have been pissed.

“So, he didn’t tell me because I was spying on him?”

“I think he was just nervous,” His mom said with a soft smile. “You know your brother isn’t very good at dealing with emotional conversations.”

“He told _you_ though…” He mumbled. He wasn’t sure he was fully revealing how betrayed he felt that Kei hadn’t trusted him, but hopefully she got it.

“And that was tough enough,” She said with a proud smile. Yeah, fair enough, that had been pretty brave of him.

“Well, had you already met him?”

“No, Kei wouldn’t even show me his picture,” She lowered her voice to an excited whisper. “He’s so handsome, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know, mom.” Akiteru rolled his eyes, he hadn’t even thought of that, he’d been too worried about the guy’s attitude and about his lips on Kei’s. He wasn’t ugly but why did Kei’s type have to be tall, wild hair and mischievous eyes.

“Calm down, they’re not getting married,” She dismissed, plating the cake carefully, more worried about that than Akiteru’s silent panic at her words. “And he seems like a good kid, Kei told me a bit about him.”

Akiteru sighed, his mom didn’t know. She was going off of what Kei had told her. She didn’t know that kid was calling Kei ‘babe’ and making him laugh and blush like it was the easiest thing in the world. Besides, she hadn’t seen them like he had. Akiteru wasn’t going to rat on his brother and tell his mom about them fiercely making out in the kitchen, but it was _worrying_. Just because Kei didn’t show his feelings didn’t mean he didn’t have any. They were just hidden, and that would make them harder to handle when he got hurt.

Kuroo had too much power over his brother already. He wasn’t a shy boy waiting for Kei to lead, this kid was already swiping Kei off his feet. If Kuroo got tired of playing with him, or decided he was too high maintenance…Akiteru didn’t want to think of the damage he could cause.

His mom seemed to notice he was still thinking about it. She finally put down the spatulas and turned to him with her arms crossed.

“You better not give them a hard time. Kei has the right to have a boyfriend,” She said, exasperation clear in her voice,

“Of course he does…” Akiteru defended, “But what if he isn’t a good one?”

“How would know?” She chuckled.

Akiteru spluttered like an idiot, he really didn’t know what a good boyfriend for a boy would be like but... He shook his head, “I know _Kei_. He’s complicated. This guy isn’t going to be able to handle that.”

“You don’t know that. He seems to really like Kei,” His mom was starting to look worried. He had to dial it back, he hadn’t meant to upset her. “You don’t think he’ll hurt him, do you?”

“No, no mom. I don’t,” Akiteru looked for a way to smooth the situation. “I’m just being stupid. I don’t know how to handle Kei growing up. It’s freaking me out,” That would do. He didn’t want to worry his mom and it was also true, he really couldn’t handle the idea of Kei dating _anyone_.

“He seems like a nice boy,” She said glancing at the door to the living room.

“Yeah, Kei’s smart. He won’t pick someone without thinking about it,” _Overthinking about it,_ Akiteru mentally corrected himself. He didn’t need to say it out loud, they both knew him enough to get it.

“Are you going to hang out with them?” She asked, tilting her head curiously.

“Yeah, I think so,” Akiteru shrugged. “Aren’t you going to get to know him?”

“He’ll be here tomorrow, I’m too tired right now,” She said, taking a bite of her cake. She had come from work, so it made sense she was tired, but it would leave him alone with the couple.

“Wait! Where’s he sleeping?” He whisper-shouted, his mom rolled her eyes. “No seriously, they can’t share-”

“We have a guest room Akiteru, breathe,” Her tone was definitely teasing but that was better than annoyed.

Akiteru did breathe, deep and slow to calm his outrage. He had thought Kuroo would leave with the last train but with a trip that long…it made sense to stay, he just didn’t like it.

She went up to bed, which meant he had to carry everything to the living room and face Kei’s wrath when he was awoken. Except Kei didn’t snap and scowl this time; apparently if it was Kuroo shaking him awake he became all cute and soft, rubbing his eyes and thanking Kuroo when he handed him his glasses.

That was crap, Kei would’ve punched Akiteru if he ever shook him awake, even if he was carrying his favorite cake. Or probably not punch but fiercely glare at the very least.

It wasn’t long before he decided to leave to his room too, the couple was blowing his mind with every interaction. Kei’s short temper seemed to have developed massive exceptions for Kuroo and Kuroo seemed to know and take advantage of it at every opportunity with the pet names, and the cuddles and the stupid jokes.

The worst part is he was still from Tokyo. Kei was complicated but Kuroo wouldn’t have to deal with that, he would just come whenever he wanted and go back to the city when he got bored. Kei was being an idiot to lower his defenses for this.

* * *

Once in his room he was too distracted to enjoy anything, so he chose to start inputting the numbers his boss had requested he have done by Tuesday. Might as well get it out of the way. He tried to focus on the task, but he couldn’t stop thinking of his little brother downstairs. Still with Kuroo, cuddling and watching horror movies. He didn’t want to be there, but he didn’t want them to be alone either. It felt like leaving him in unknown, dangerous territory without backup.

There was a knock on his open door. He turned to find Kei cautiously poking his head into the room.

“Are you going to bed?” Akiteru asked, annoyed at the nervous look in Kei’s eyes. His brother should have nothing to worry about, specially not while talking to him.

Kei raised an eyebrow; it was ten p.m. on a Friday.

“Are you mad that I got a boyfriend? Or that-…that I’m gay?” Kei was as blunt as always, but his voice shook.

Akiteru was surprised at the honest question. “No, of course not.”

“Cause you keep glaring at him, I didn’t think it would be a big deal,” Kei was still standing nervously at the door, tugging at his fingers. He wouldn’t look at Akiteru, focusing on the ground instead.

“Well, a little heads up would’ve been nice,” Akiteru didn’t mean to sound so cold but he was _still_ reeling from all the new information and the scene he’d walked into, even if it had been hours ago. “I didn’t need to find out like that.”

“I was nervous,” Kei said, then took a deep breath and finally looked at him. His eyes were challenging, a stubborn frown and tight fists replacing the nervous fidgeting. “I guess I was right to be.”

“What does that mean?” Akiteru said slowly, his tone was warning Kei not to push him.

“You _are_ mad! Even Kuroo can tell,” Kei’s voice was louder, but still not enough to be heard down the hallway.

Kuroo’s name annoyed him, reminded him of how much Kei had already invested in the kid. He had to wait a second so he wouldn’t snap back. “I don’t care that you have a boyfriend Kei, you can do whatever you want.”

“Fine,” Kei deflated. He looked unsure but turned to leave, he was finishing the conversation.

Akiteru couldn’t let Kei leave thinking he approved of the boy though. Not when he was somewhere in their house waiting to keep wooing Kei. “But you didn’t have to get one that looks like _that_.”

“Like _what_ exactly?” Kei turned sharply, walking further into the room.

“Come on, Kei! The hair? The smirk?” Akiteru stood from his chair. Kei seemed ready to reply but Akiteru wasn’t done. “He’s older, he’s…experienced and cool. He’s not _like_ you.”

Kei scoffed, rolling his eyes. “So, what? I don’t-”

“So, he’s taking advantage of you!” Akiteru didn’t want to say it but Kei seemed too dense to understand.

“You don’t even know him-”

“God, you sound like a Disney princess Kei. How can you be this naïve?” Akiteru shook his head with a huff. “A boy like _that_ with someone like you. It won’t end well; he’s just playing around.”

Kei stared at him speechless. His eyes wide and hurt. Akiteru opened his mouth to somehow soften the blow but Kei spoke faster.

“Fuck you, Akiteru. Just…fuck you,” Kei’s voice was cold but had enough underlining anger to almost distract Akiteru from the glistening of his eyes. The combination made Akiteru look away, suddenly ashamed. Kei turned and had it not been that late or had Kuroo not been in the house he was sure he would’ve slammed the door.

He heard his brother’s footsteps moving down the stairs and dropped back onto his computer chair, feeling exhausted. That had been ugly, but maybe it would help Kei deal with the truth. That boy wasn’t good for him.

He looked at his stupid data sheet and closed the laptop. He wouldn’t focus any better now that Kei had left with teary eyes.

He sighed and laid on his bed. He suddenly realized were exactly Kei had gone. To Kuroo’s arms. Akiteru had gotten his brother all emotional and vulnerable and sent him to the arms of a clever cat. He quickly moved out of his room, already planning on how to make Kuroo leave. If he was trying anything, he would kick the kid out, even if Kei hated him forever.

He quietly walked to the archway into the living room and peaked inside, knowing the dark hallway behind him would help him stay unnoticed.

Instead of finding Kuroo coaxing Kei into another make out session he found them hugging on the couch. Kuroo’s arms were wrapped around Kei, and he was running a gentle hand through the blonde hair.

“It’s okay…It will be okay,” Kuroo’s voice was quiet. “He’ll come around; it will be okay.”

Kei mumbled against Kuroo’s neck, and he let out a sigh.

“I know, I’m sorry,” He placed a soft kiss against Kei’s cheek. “Maybe I shouldn’t have come.”

Kei pulled away from Kuroo to look at him properly. “It’s not your fault. Nothing is,” His voice wavered as he spoke, it broke Akiteru’s heart to hear him sound so sad. “He’s wrong, about everything.”

“Do you want to tell me what he said?” Kuroo cleaned off some tears off of Kei’s cheek.

“Nothing that made sense,” Kei roughly brushed the remaining tears and put his glasses back on. “Let’s finish the movie.”

“Are you sure? We can just go to bed.”

Akiteru frowned at the suggestion but tried to calm down and not burst in to make things worse.

“Yeah, I need to distract myself for a bit,” Kei replied, still sniffly but slowly calming down.

Kuroo started the movie again with a sigh.

Akiteru went back to his room feeling guilty. Not about what he’d said, nothing he’d said had been wrong, but Kei was hurt. Clearly, he should have been a little more careful on the phrasing.

Kei didn’t understand, Akiteru didn’t want to hurt him. He would never hurt him on purpose. He was just worried that this older, city kid would break his brother’s heart. Kei didn’t need that. He was one of the best students in his class, he was learning how to enjoy having a team and he was just discovering his real potential. This kid could ruin everything, and Kei would be wrecked.

He focused on the pain he had seen in his brother’s eyes. He would have to fix it…even if that meant getting along with Kuroo and ignoring his big brother instinct telling him not to let Kei date a kid that could hurt him so easily.

He almost wanted to make a list of things Kuroo better not take for granted, both because he better treat Kei right and also because the kid should know what he would miss when things inevitably imploded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the nice comments and for reading my story, posting fics is terrifying lol
> 
> I'm sorry for the long wait and I hope you guys enjoyed the new chapter!
> 
> Let me know of any thoughts you have :)

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic with multiple chapters, I have most of it written but I will have to edit before posting more.
> 
> Thank you for reading, please leave a comment if you enjoyed it!


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